China authorities have vowed to put an end to illegal ivory poaching in the country, and it showed commitment to this cause by publicly crushing 662 kilograms of confiscated ivory and ivory products.

State Forestry Administration Head Zhao Shucong said at an event in the nation's capital that it is the country's goal to eradicate the illegal processing and selling of ivory from elephants, The Guardian reported.

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To achieve this end, Zhao said the ivory trade in China will be "strictly" controlled. This move follows a one-year ivory import ban that was unveiled in February. China is reportedly also in a talks with the U.S. to tackle this issue.

China's commitment, as well as the ceremony where smuggled ivory and ivory products were placed on a conveyor belt that smashed them into pebbles, was applauded by conservationists.

World Wide Fund China CEO Lo Szee Ping noted that the announcement is expected to have a "profound impact" on the conservation of wild elephants and stopping of ivory trafficking.

Meanwhile, WildAid executive director, Peter Knights, also supported China's new anti-poaching initiative. He described it as "the greatest single measure" that could reduce the illegal trade in Africa.

Knights added that 95 percent of surveyed respondents in China said that they support an ivory ban. The 2014 survey also revealed that 51.5 percent of the participants considered elephant poaching as a problem in the country.

According to The Guardian, China and the U.S. are believed to be the biggest market for ivory products.

Citing a study by Colorado State University, National Geographic said that from 2010 to 2012, around 100,000 elephants in Africa were killed, all for poachers' pursuit of ivory. The study also said that the number of elephants in central Africa fell by 64 percent in 10 years.

It is believed that in 1979, there were 1.3 million African elephants. In 2007, the numbers went down to as low as 472,000.

Despite China's renewed commitment to the cause, the fight against poaching and preserving ecological balance by saving elephants has a long way to go. Aside from China, other Asian countries known to participate in this illegal trade include the Philippines, Thailand, and Japan.

TagsIvory trade, illegal ivory trade, china Operation Guardian, illegal elephant tusks, elephants